According to the Men Against Violence mission statement, the Penn State peer education group consists of men who “seek to oppose interpersonal violence in all of its manifestations and to promote healthy masculinity.” For John Broderick, MAV’s lead undergraduate programming coordinator, Men Against Violence is even more than that; it is also a platform for community engagement and a source of change across University Park.
HC: In your own words, what is Men Against Violence and what does it do for the Penn State Community? Why is it important?
JB: Men Against Violence is a peer education group that gives educational presentations to different groups on campus about consent, sexual violence, bystander intervention, and almost any topic that a group requests similar to those topics. We try to educate students in a more modern and realistic way about consent on college campuses, because many falsehoods are spread to us during our primary education years. Many people believe that a person cannot consent if they have had even a sip of alcohol, or that they must obtain verbal consent every time. We know that this is not true, so we try to define issues like consent and sexual violence for people in a way that is realistic to the college experience. I think it is important because I believe people will automatically tune out any consent based education if the presenters are not realistic about the environment we live in.
HC: How did you first get involved in Men Against Violence and is your current role within the organization?
JB: I first got involved when Men Against Violence presented at my fraternity house (Theta Chi) during my sophomore year (I’m now a senior). I had a friend get sexually assaulted prior to that and was looking for ways to get involved, and this seemed like the perfect avenue. I am currently the lead undergraduate programming coordinator, which just means I help schedule and present to the different groups on campus. The roles are pretty informal in MAV, with the natural progression normally looking like coming to a few of our meetings to get educated, then observing a few presentations, and then finally presenting yourself.
HC: What is your favorite part of what you do with Men Against Violence?
JB: My favorite part is the community engagement. Throughout my 2 years of MAV involvement, I’ve probably presented to/interacted with around 30 fraternities and many other groups on campus. I can’t remember a single experience where I thought people were disrespectful or dismissive to us. I believe that all Penn Staters want to make the school a safer, more welcoming place, and I love seeing groups on campus taking that initiative.
HC: Your organization mission statement focuses on promoting healthy masculinity. What does that mean to you and why do you think it is important?
JB: I think that a lot of people have a misinformed view of what it means to be a feminist. I think the problem with toxic/extreme masculinity is the sense of entitlement that comes along with it. I think that same sense of entitlement is a huge contributor to sexual assault. Healthy masculinity to me means respecting other people and their decisions. Recognizing that a woman (or any person for that matter) can wear/say/do anything they want, and that does not equate to consent, is important. Healthy masculinity to me means you don’t determine how much of a “man” someone is based on how many people they sleep with, if they like sports, or if they are physically strong. Basing your opinion on someone’s character and how they treat others instead of these traditionally masculine qualities is what healthy masculinity looks like.
HC: Who inspires you in your work with Men Against Violence?
JB: Two people have really been my inspiration; one on a national scale and one on a very local scale. First, Joe Biden-he has publicly campaigned hard for the “It’s On Us” campaign, even after his vice presidency. To see someone with so much influence attempt to tackle this issue, without using it for political gain, has been a giant inspiration. Second, Tim Donovan is the who I credit with getting me so involved with Men Against Violence. Tim Donovan is currently the Title IX Outreach Coordinator at University of Central Florida, but during his time in graduate school at PSU helped me along the way and educated me a ton.
HC: What do you want to see from Penn State in the future regarding violence on campus?
JB: My loftiest goal for education in general is for realistic discussion about consent, alcohol, and sexual violence to start much earlier than college. However, my biggest hope for Penn State is to make the topics we educate people about on campus part of our freshman seminar class. The biggest complaint we get is people asking us why they were not taught about this stuff sooner. We teach bystander intervention, which is how to check in/stop a situation when you believe someone is in danger, and we always hear people tell us they wish they learned this sooner. In addition, some groups on campus feel they are targeted, and we agree that a wider range of students should be educated. The red zone is the first six weeks of fall semester, and it’s when we see some of the highest increases in sexual violence rates. If students were taught more realistically about consent and how alcohol affects consent, they might be able to cut down rates of sexual violence. Unfortunately, Penn State only has an online module that students mindlessly click through during the summer before their freshman year. This is ineffective and could be much more productive if students have constructive conversation and education with their peers in a classroom setting.
HC: Ten years from now, do you see yourself still involved in violence prevention and anti-sexism movements?
JB: I hope to be. I have always floated the idea around in my head about going to law school to become a Title IX coordinator, but I have nothing set in stone yet. I’m going to start my new job in a couple of months and see how I can get involved once I settle down.
If you’re interested in becoming a part of Men Against Violence at Penn State, check out the Center for Women Students website for Student Involvement Opportunities in Peer Education, or shoot MAV an email at pennstatemav@psu.edu.